[Flashback] The Warm Touch of Winter (Cypress)

[Nustril]

He accepted her offer of support, slipping his arm around her shoulder. It gave him ample opportunity to enjoy her smell. There was something about the smell of his mistress and the feel of her braid that gave him a happy feeling in the pit of his stomach. Leaning down he gave her a kiss on the very top of her head as the two of them stepped out of the cave and into the sunshine.

Nustril had not yet forgotten the feeling of the sun on his skin, but it was very good to feel it once more. This had probably been the most time he had ever spent indoors and inactive since he had been birthed. "I think that when I am fully healed, you will have to spend a few more days pampering me. There is something about being injured that takes all of the fun out of this business."

Chuckling to himself, he squeezed her shoulders and allowed her to set the pace. It felt as if he could walk on his own, but he was not in any hurry to do so. Falling down was not quite as fun as it looked. It wasn't as if they had somewhere to go.

[Cypress]

Once she had settled into the crook of his arm she began to guide him over the spongy ground, taking care to avoid any snow that remained. In spite of the difference in their sizes, it was quite a perfect fit there in the crook of his arm.

"Oh? I was thinking quite the same thing, only different. That when you are fully healed, you should take a few..let's say several days and pamper me." Her mouth curled into a coy smile. "That is what you meant, yes?" She pulled a deep breath into her body and turned her face toward the sun.

They walked a wide crescent that took them around the back of the cave and up onto the ground above it. There was a lovely vantage of the small valley that snaked a path to the mouth of their cave, it was a fine view of the surrounding area. Cypress had discovered it on one of her daily quests for fire wood.

"It's beautiful, don't you think?" She pointed to a spot where the valley split into two paths, one, the direction from which they'd approached, and the other leading further into the forest. "Perhaps on our departure, we ought to try that way? That is, of course, following my pampering."

[Nustril]

"Yes, well, of course I meant pamper you..." By the time they had reached the top of the hill Nustril had begun walking on his own. That is not to say that he pulled his arm away from her shoulders, only that he was no longer placing any weight on her. The feeling of the breeze on his skin was refreshing as it swirled through his toga. "I love hilltops..."

"I think that direction is as good as any. After I finish with your pampering of course. That actually sounds like the highlight of this trip." Looking her up and down he offered a lewd smile and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Leave it to the cat to ruin a romantic moment.

[Cypress]

After a sidelong glance at her partner, she looked forward once more, shaking her head. All joking aside, she stood there for a moment taking stock of how many new aches were present in her body. Without thinking, she rolled her shoulders in an effort to relieve a tightness that had settled there.

"Shall we give your recovery another week or two, and then be on our way?" A small cascade of snow falling from a tree below caught her attention and she watched as it toppled from branch to branch until settling on the ground. "How ever much time you need." She had grown accustomed to the closeness of the cave and now didn't feel so cramped, it was quite a surprise, given her affinity for open space. "Do you tire of being cramped in that cave?"

[Nustril]

"I am really tired of it. Another five or ten days should be more than enough. The moment I am healthy enough to hunt again, we will be out of here. It will be over before you know it though. You know what they say, we'll be out of here in two shakes of a tiger's tail." He smiled down at her again and squeezed her shoulders. It had hurt a little bit when she rolled them without warning, but he would be fine.

In the distance he could see a deer grazing on the grass, oblivious to their presence. The urge seized him to shift and chase it down. He reveled in the hunt, his passion for it second only to his passion for his Cypress. Yet now was not the time. It would be longer still before he was healthy enough to go prowling the woods. As he watched the deer look up at them calmly before scampering off, he whispered "Until then, dear deer..."

[Cypress]

A low chuckle rumbled in her throat and she watched the deer. Was it close enough? She had grabbed both flight and barbed arrows when they had left the cave. Taking a moment. she judged the distance to the deer. Wearing a sweet smile she looked up at him.

"Shall I try to get us some meat for our broth?" Grasping her bow she reached for a flight arrow, waiting for his response. The distance seemed extreme, but as with any hunt, the worst she would have to do is retrieve and arrow or two.

[Nustril]

Though he could not purr in human form, the groan that came out of his throat came very close. "Oh boy, would you? You cannot begin to imagine the pampering if you take that thing down. Shoot it!" By the time he was done speaking his voice had become quite insistent. His mouth was already watering at the idea of meat for supper.

Removing his arm from her shoulder he stood on his own, moving a few steps away so that she would have room to fire. His eyes narrowed as he watched the deer, and his lips drew back in a hungry snarl.

[Cypress]

His response made her feel warm, and want to do this for him even more. She knelt on the ground, doing all she could to steady her shot. Taking one arrow, she set it at her feet, making it quick to load should she need it, she notched a second and pulled the bowstring taut. Her left eye slipped shut and a long breath was calmly expelled from her lungs.

The deer's ear twitched as though giving her the all clear to shoot. With the tip of her arrow targeted on the deers chest she released it. As it flew she grabbed the other and notched it. As the second arrow left her bow the the first struck the deer. The shot would not kill, lodged in its belly it startled the deer and it took a leap, lunging forward, the second arrow shot so close behind struck it in the hind quarter and crippled it. The deer stumbled, taking eight or ten steps, and then crumpled to the ground.

She looked up at Nustril, a smile on her face.

"I must end it. Do you want to wait here?"

[Nustril]

"Oh no, i'll come with you. I can't do much to help you carry it back, but I could carry your things for you while you gather up what will be coming back with us." His face was lit by a huge grin which highlighted his prominent fangs. It was like getting a cake, or a present, but better. He was finally going to get his hands on some meat again.

"Besides, if I spend all my time sitting in that cave i'll start to get fat. Wouldn't want that now would you?" He quickly slipped his arm around her shoulder and leaned a little bit of weight on her. Walking on his own was not too difficult, but they would want to hustle over there before the deer suffered needlessly. Nothing worse than an unclean kill left laying on the forest floor.

[Cypress]

The trek to the deer was not brisk by any means, but in light of their recent history, they made very good time. When they reached the deer it lay on the forest floor, panting heavily. It was too shocked to struggle as Cypress knelt by its side. Taking one of her daggers, she pressed the tip of the blade against the deer's ribs. With one quick thrust, she pushed it between the deer's ribs and into its heart. It pulled one final gurgling breath and then its muscles released the weight of its head to the ground.

She looked over her shoulder to Nustril, a sad smile on her face. By luck, the doe was on the smaller side, most likely a yearling or second year. It would offer some challenge but would not be impossible for her to transport alone.

Once she'd removed her arrows from the carcass, she took a length of rope from her pack and secured the deers legs together, fronts and backs. Handing her belongings to Nustril she returned to the deer. Crouched in front of it she bowed, hoisting the front legs over her shoulders. After several deep breaths she pushed up to standing, dragging the deer with her, laying across her shoulders.

"I will see how far I can go like this, then drag the beast." She smiled weakly, and began to stagger like a drunkard toward the cave.